PhOtOGRAPhy: COuRteSy OF iidA
best of competition
corporate space small: best of category
Project Casa Rex Offices
Where São Paulo, Brazil
Designer FGMF Arquitetos
In transforming a 1940s residential building into
an office for Brazilian design firm Casa Rex, FGMF
Arquitetos removed previous additions that hid the
building's original architecture and stripped it down
to its purest forms. The client wanted the office to
be divided into two zones: a meeting and reception
area with space for displaying work, and a studio
area with open workspaces. Extensive demolition
allowed for the creation of a double-height ceiling
in the reception area. Exposed brick gives a raw
feeling to the space, and a clean white path lined
with large gray gravel leads to the reception desk.
The same gravel, along with red sandstone, was
used to create the building's unique gabion facade.
A cloud-like formation of lights hangs
from the two-story high ceiling above a section of
the open studio space. A portion of the second
floor is closed off to create a large office for the
company's president. Hollow concrete blocks are
stacked floor-to-ceiling along one of the studio
walls, providing a clever solution for storing books.
Several blocks are also stacked to create the
foundation of a wood staircase that extends
up to the president's office. -Cody Calamaio
contract
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Contract - December 2013